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Desserts

Recipe: Gluten-Free Almond Cranberry Bites

Last Updated on by the Celiac-Disease.com Staff 4 Comments

With the holidays quickly approaching, I thought it was time to share these amazing cookies with you all. While the recipe calls for cherries, I didn’t have any when I made these last year, so I substituted dried cranberries. I liked that so much that I have never tried the cherries, however, dried cherries with chocolate drizzle on top would be awesome!

Almond Cranberry Bites
**Original recipe from Eatingwell.com; modified to be gluten-free by me

    • 1/3 cup whole almonds (I used Trader Joe’s raw almonds)
    • 1/3 cup sugar
    • 2/3 cup coarsely chopped dried cherries
    • 2/3 cup gluten-free flour mix (I used Jules gluten-free Flour)
    • 2 tablespoons canola oil
    • 1 large egg white
    • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
    • 2 tablespoons chocolate chips or finely chopped dark and/or white chocolate, for decoration (optional- I opted not to add this, but will next time.)

Makes about 20 cookies – I will make sure to double this next time.

Directions

  1. Heat oven to 350.
  2. Grind raw almonds & sugar in a food processor until you have the desired texture; the finer the texture, the more intense the almond flavor & less crunch from the almond. Be careful not to turn the almonds into paste. Transfer mix to large bowl & mix in flour & cranberries.
  3. Add egg white, oil, vanilla & almond extracts. Mix until well incorporated.
  4. Shape dough into small balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the bottom is slightly brown; the tops will not brown.
  5. Transfer to a wire rack & cool completely.
  6. Optional- melt chocolate & drizzle over cookies with a fork. Let stand until chocolate sets.

I can’t wait to make more of these! They certainly don’t last very long!

Recipe: Gluten-Free Dark Chocolate & Cherry Brownies

Last Updated on by the Celiac-Disease.com Staff Leave a Comment

Every year for Christmas my Mom gets me a subscription to Cooking Light Magazine. I love to browse new recipes and prefer healthy cooking because it really seems to fit best with the gluten-free lifestyle. This recipe for brownies jumped out at me because it uses cherry preserves, a favorite of mine. I love Polaner All Fruit Spreads, especially the black cherry. There are only 155 calories and 5 grams of fat per brownie, so these are a healthier option when you just have to get that chocolate fix.

These are simple to make and adapt to gluten-free. I used an all-purpose flour mix of rice flour, potato starch (not flour) and tapioca starch. These were amazing! I really can’t put into words how good they are. They are moist and chocolaty. I am not sure why they are called dark chocolate, because there is no dark chocolate added to the recipe. The black cherry preserves add a nice, subtle flavor and definitely help keep the brownies moist.

Dark Chocolate and Cherry Brownies

3/4 cup all-purpose gluten-free flour
1 cup sugar
A little less than 1 tsp of Xanthan Gum
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa (Hershey’s dark chocolate cocoa can be used)
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup cherry preserves
1/3 cup water
5 TBSP butter
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1 large egg white
1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
powdered sugar (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Line a 9-inch square pan with parchment paper and spray with PAM ( if you don’t have parchment paper, just spray the pan with PAM).
3. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, xanthan gum, sugar, cocoa, baking powder and salt in a large bowl; stir with a whisk. Combine cherry preserves, butter and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Add preserves mixture to flour mixture; stir well. Add egg & egg white; stir until smooth. Stir in chocolate chips. Scrape batter into prepared pan. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Cool in pan on wire rack. Garnish with powdered sugar, if desired.

Yield: 16 servings. Calories: 155; Fat grams: 5.4.

Perfect way to end the day!

Recipe: Oatmeal Raisin Bars

Last Updated on by the Celiac-Disease.com Staff 14 Comments

In my recent quest to add more iron-rich foods to my diet, I brought back an old favorite recipe to help me out – Oatmeal Raisin Bars. The combination of oatmeal & raisins has always been appealing to me, so these bars are just the perfect snack!

I like to use Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free Rolled Oats. Not only do they have great fiber & protein stats, but they contain 15% of the RDA of iron. Most people with Celiac Disease tolerate oats just fine, but there is a small percentage who don’t. If you haven’t yet introduced oats to your gluten-free diet, please make sure to do so slowly. Raisins are another decent source of iron with 6% of the RDA in one serving (1/4 cup).

Oatmeal Raisin Bars

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups dry oats (Bob’s Red Mill GF Oats)
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour (I used Pamela’s Baking & Pancake Mix; if you use a regular GF Flour Mix, make sure to add 1/2 tsp xanthan gum, if it isn’t in the mix)
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 cup raisins

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 8-inch square baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, combine ingredients until smooth.
  3. Spread batter in prepared baking pan, and bake for approximately 25-30 minutes until bars are cooked all the way through.
  4. Let bars cool completely in pan before cutting.

Makes 9 bars

Recipe: Gluten-Free Applesauce Cookies

Last Updated on by the Celiac-Disease.com Staff 3 Comments

Fall has arrived rather quickly here in Central Ohio. We went from temperatures in the 90s last week to a high of 55 today. While that is wrong on so many levels, I welcome this cooler weather with open arms. I am done with my summer wardrobe & ready to move on to fall. If it could be fall year round, I would be just about as happy as a student seeing a substitute on test day.

When I was growing up my grandmother always used to make applesauce/spice cookies. They were some of my favorite cookies. The recipe originally came from Betty Crocker’s Cookbook, the 1969 edition. All I had to do was modify the recipe to make it gluten-free.

These cookies smell amazing while they are cooking. Using homemade applesauce really enhances the wonderful flavor of these cookies. The flavors are everything representative of the season. The recipe for the frosting that Betty Crocker suggests is not the one I use. I actually use the Cinnamon Icing that I use for my pumpkin cookies. They aren’t the prettiest cookies, but who cares when they taste so good?!? They don’t want to flatten out when they bake, so perhaps shaping them a little flatter before putting them in the oven will help in that regard.

Applesauce Cookies

**From The Betty Crocker Cookbook 1969 Edition

  • ½ cup softened butter or margarine
  • ¾ cup applesauce
  • 2 ¾ cup flour (I used gluten-free Pantry’s All-Purpose mix that includes guar gum, so didn’t add any xanthan gum; make sure to add this if you don’t have it in your mix already)
  • 1 1/2 tsp xanthan gum (use only if the flour mix you are using doesn’t contain xanthan or guar gums)
  • 1 ½ cups packed brown sugar
  • 1 cup chopped pecans (I used walnuts)
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp ground cloves
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • 2 eggs

Heat oven to 375. Mix butter and applesauce. Stir in remaining ingredients. Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls about 1 inch apart onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake until almost no indentation remains when touched – 8 to 10 minutes. Immediately remove from cookie sheet. Cool. Frost with Caramel Frosting if desired. About 6 dozen cookies – 70 calories each. (This made no where near 6 dozen, more like 2-3 dozen)

Caramel Frosting
**This is the recipe for frosting that Betty Crocker suggests; I did not use this one

  • ½ cup margarine or butter
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • ¼ cup milk
  • 2 cups powdered sugar

Heat margarine in 1-quart saucepan until melted. Stir in brown sugar. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir over low heat 2 minutes. Stir in milk. Heat to boiling; remove from heat. Cool to lukewarm. Gradually stir in powdered sugar. Place pan of frosting in bowl of cold water; beat until smooth and of spreading consistency. If frosting becomes too stiff, stir in additional milk, 1 tsp at a time. Frosts a 13 x 9 inch cake or fills and frost two 8 or 9 inch cake layers.

Cinnamon Frosting
**This is the icing/frosting that I use

  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 TBSP milk
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Mix all ingredients together until icing is the right consistency to ice cookies. You can half this recipe if you want less icing.

Enjoy!!

Recipe: Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Pie

Last Updated on by the Celiac-Disease.com Staff 3 Comments

This dessert is an old favorite in our house. I remember making this for the first time when I was 13 years old after finding the recipe on a bag of Nestle Chocolate Chips.

Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Pie

  • 1 unbaked pie shell (I used Wh0le Foods Bakehouse GF Pie Crust)
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup Gluten-free Flour (I used Pamela’s Baking & Pancake Mix)
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup (1.5 sticks) butter, softened
  • 1 cup Semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1 cup chopped nuts (I omitted this)
  • Sweetened whipped cream or ice cream for topping (I used Cool Whip in a can)

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 325.
  2. Beat eggs in large mixing bowl on high speed until foamy.  Beat in flour, sugar & brown sugar.  Beat in butter.  Stir in chocolate chips & nuts.  Spoon into pie shell.
  3. Bake for 55 to 6o minutes or until knife inserted halfway between the center & the edge comes out clean.  Cool on wire rack.  Serve warm w/ whipped cream or ice cream.

**I baked for about 50 minutes.  Keep a close eye on this.  Mine almost looked overdone on the top, but was perfect.

**If you don’t want all the chips to sink to the bottom, either use mini chocolate chips or dust with GF flour or cocoa.

This was a huge hit.  I forget how easy this is to make.  To add some variation you could use different flavor chips – peanut butter, butterscotch or mint.  Just make sure to check the gluten-free status of the chips.